Federal Register / Vol. 88, No. 234 / Thursday, December 7, 2023 / Notices 85265 

further communicate with the 

concerned individuals or community. 

The Navy would provide project 

information and clarification of the 

mitigation measures that will reduce 

impacts to marine mammals. 

Based on the description of the 

specified activity, the measures 

described to minimize adverse effects 

on the availability of marine mammals 

for subsistence purposes, and the 

proposed mitigation and monitoring 

measures, NMFS has preliminarily 

determined that there will not be an 

unmitigable adverse impact on 

subsistence uses from the Navy’s 

proposed activities. 

Endangered Species Act 

Section 7(a)(2) of the Endangered 

Species Act of 1973 (ESA; 16 U.S.C. 

1531 et seq.) requires that each Federal 

agency insure that any action it 

authorizes, funds, or carries out is not 

likely to jeopardize the continued 

existence of any endangered or 

threatened species or result in the 

destruction or adverse modification of 

designated critical habitat. To ensure 

ESA compliance for the issuance of 

IHAs, NMFS consults internally 

whenever we propose to authorize take 

for endangered or threatened species, in 

this case with NMFS’ Alaska Regional 

Office (AKRO). 

NMFS OPR is proposing to authorize 

take of ringed seals, which are listed 

under the ESA. OPR has requested a 

section 7 consultation with the AKRO 

for the issuance of this IHA. The Navy 

has also requested a section 7 

consultation with AKRO for ICEX Study 

Area activities. OPR will conclude the 

ESA consultation prior to reaching a 

determination regarding the proposed 

issuance of the authorization. 

Proposed Authorization 

As a result of these preliminary 

determinations, NMFS proposes to issue 

an IHA to the Navy for conducting 

submarine training and testing activities 

in the Arctic Ocean beginning in 

February 2024, provided the previously 

mentioned mitigation, monitoring, and 

reporting requirements are incorporated. 

A draft of the proposed IHA can be 

found at: https://

www.fisheries.noaa.gov/national/ 

marine-mammal-protection/incidentaltake-authorizations-military-readinessactivities. 

Request for Public Comments 

We request comment on our analyses, 

the proposed authorization, and any 

other aspect of this notice of proposed 

IHA for the proposed ICEX24 activities. 

We also request comment on the 

potential renewal of this proposed IHA 

as described in the paragraph below. 

Please include with your comments any 

supporting data or literature citations to 

help inform decisions on the request for 

this IHA or a subsequent renewal IHA. 

On a case-by-case basis, NMFS may 

issue a 1-time, 1-year renewal IHA 

following notice to the public providing 

an additional 15 days for public 

comments when (1) up to another year 

of identical or nearly identical activities 

as described in the Description of 

Proposed Activity section of this notice 

is planned or (2) the activities as 

described in the Description of 

Proposed Activity section of this notice 

would not be completed by the time the 

IHA expires and a renewal would allow 

for completion of the activities beyond 

that described in the Dates and Duration 

section of this notice, provided all of the 

following conditions are met: 

• A request for renewal is received no 

later than 60 days prior to the needed 

renewal IHA effective date (recognizing 

that the renewal IHA expiration date 

cannot extend beyond 1 year from 

expiration of the initial IHA); and 

• The request for renewal must 

include the following: 

(1) An explanation that the activities 

to be conducted under the requested 

renewal IHA are identical to the 

activities analyzed under the initial 

IHA, are a subset of the activities, or 

include changes so minor (e.g., 

reduction in pile size) that the changes 

do not affect the previous analyses, 

mitigation and monitoring 

requirements, or take estimates (with 

the exception of reducing the type or 

amount of take); and 

(2) A preliminary monitoring report 

showing the results of the required 

monitoring to date and an explanation 

showing that the monitoring results do 

not indicate impacts of a scale or nature 

not previously analyzed or authorized. 

• Upon review of the request for 

renewal, the status of the affected 

species or stocks, and any other 

pertinent information, NMFS 

determines that there are no more than 

minor changes in the activities, the 

proposed renewal timeframe does not 

significantly alter the agency’s initial 

impact findings, the mitigation and 

monitoring measures will remain the 

same and appropriate, and the findings 

in the initial IHA remain valid. 

Dated: December 4, 2023. 

Catherine Marzin, 

Acting Director, Office of Protected Resources, 

National Marine Fisheries Service. 

[FR Doc. 2023–26913 Filed 12–6–23; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 3510–22–P 

DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE 

National Oceanic and Atmospheric 

Administration 

Evaluation of Sapelo Island National 

Estuarine Research Reserve; Notice of 

Public Meeting; Request for Comments 

AGENCY: Office for Coastal Management, 

National Ocean Service, National 

Oceanic and Atmospheric 

Administration, Department of 

Commerce. 

ACTION: Notice of public meeting and 

opportunity to comment. 

SUMMARY: The National Oceanic and 

Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), 

Office for Coastal Management, will 

hold an in-person public meeting to 

solicit input on the performance 

evaluation of the Sapelo Island National 

Estuarine Research Reserve. NOAA also 

invites the public to submit written 

comments. 

DATES: NOAA will hold an in-person 

public meeting on Wednesday, February 

7, 2024, at 6:30 p.m. eastern. NOAA will 

consider all relevant written comments 

received by Friday, February 16, 2024. 

ADDRESSES: Comments may be 

submitted by one of the following 

methods: 

• In-Person Public Meeting: Provide 

oral comments during the in-person 

public meeting on Wednesday, February 

7, 2024, at 6:30 p.m. eastern at the 

Sapelo Island Visitor Center, 1766 

Landing Road Southeast, Darien, GA 

31305. 

• Email: Send written comments to 

Ralph Cantral, Evaluator, NOAA Office 

for Coastal Management, at 

Ralph.Cantral@noaa.gov. Include 

‘‘Comments on Performance Evaluation 

of Sapelo Island National Estuarine 

Research Reserve’’ in the subject line of 

the message. 

NOAA will accept anonymous 

comments; however, the written 

comments NOAA receives are 

considered part of the public record, 

and the entirety of the comment, 

including the name of the commenter, 

email address, attachments, and other 

supporting materials, will be publicly 

accessible. Sensitive personally 

identifiable information, such as 

account numbers and Social Security 

numbers, should not be included with 

the comments. Comments that are not 

related to the performance evaluation of 

the Sapelo Island National Estuarine 

Research Reserve or that contain 

profanity, vulgarity, threats, or other 

inappropriate language will not be 

considered. 


ddrumheller on DSK120RN23PROD with NOTICES1
85266 Federal Register / Vol. 88, No. 234 / Thursday, December 7, 2023 / Notices 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: 

Ralph Cantral, Evaluator, NOAA Office 

for Coastal Management, by email at 

Ralph.Cantral@noaa.gov or by phone at 

(843) 474–1357. Copies of the previous 

evaluation findings, reserve 

management plan, and reserve site 

profile may be viewed and downloaded 

at https://coast.noaa.gov/czm/ 

evaluations/. A copy of the evaluation 

notification letter and most recent 

progress report may be obtained upon 

request by contacting Ralph Cantral. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Section 

315(f) of the Coastal Zone Management 

Act (CZMA) requires NOAA to conduct 

periodic evaluations of federally 

approved national estuarine research 

reserves. The evaluation process 

includes holding one or more public 

meetings, considering public comments, 

and consulting with interested Federal, 

State, and local agencies and members 

of the public. During the evaluation, 

NOAA will consider the extent to which 

the State of Georgia has met the national 

objectives, and has adhered to the 

management program approved by the 

Secretary of Commerce, the 

requirements of section 315(b)(2) of the 

CZMA, and the terms of financial 

assistance under the CZMA. When the 

evaluation is complete, NOAA’s Office 

for Coastal Management will place a 

notice in the Federal Register 

announcing the availability of the final 

evaluation findings. 

Authority: 16 U.S.C. 1461. 

Keelin Kuipers, 

Deputy Director, Office for Coastal 

Management, National Ocean Service, 

National Oceanic and Atmospheric 

Administration. 

[FR Doc. 2023–26906 Filed 12–6–23; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 3510–JE–P 

DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE 

National Telecommunications and 

Information Administration 

Implementation of the National 

Spectrum Strategy 

AGENCY: National Telecommunications 

and Information Administration, U.S. 

Department of Commerce. 

ACTION: Notice of opportunity for public 

input. 

SUMMARY: The White House released a 

Presidential Memorandum (PM), 

Modernizing United States Spectrum 

Policy and Establishing a National 

Spectrum Strategy, and the National 

Spectrum Strategy (Strategy), on 

November 13, 2023. The PM tasks the 

Secretary of Commerce, through the 

National Telecommunications and 

Information Administration (NTIA), 

with publishing an Implementation Plan 

for the Strategy within 120 days after its 

release. NTIA welcomes public input on 

the implementation of the Strategy and 

is providing the opportunity to submit 

written comments and/or request 

meetings with NTIA staff regarding the 

implementation plan. 

DATES: Parties should submit written 

comments no later than January 2, 2024. 

Parties requesting meetings should do 

so as soon as practicable. 

ADDRESSES: All written inputs and any 

requests for meetings should be sent to 

NSSimplementationplan@ntia.gov. 

Responders should include a page 

number on each page of their 

submissions. Please do not include in 

your input information of a confidential 

nature, such as sensitive personal or 

business information. All comments 

received are part of the public record 

and generally will be posted to the 

NTIA website without change. All 

personally identifiable information (e.g., 

name, address) voluntarily submitted 

may be publicly accessible. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: 

Please direct questions regarding this 

Notice to John Alden, 

Telecommunications Specialist, Office 

of Spectrum Management, NTIA, at 

(202) 482–8046 or jalden@ntia.gov. 

Please direct media inquiries to NTIA’s 

Office of Public Affairs, (202) 482–7002; 

or press@ntia.gov. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: NTIA 

serves as the President’s principal 

advisor on telecommunications policies 

and manages the use of the radiofrequency spectrum by federal agencies. 

See 47 U.S.C. 902(b)(2). NTIA is 

interested in public views on 

implementing the Strategy, with a focus 

on the next 1–3 years, as such inputs 

allow NTIA and other federal agencies 

to benefit from expertise and viewpoints 

outside the federal government. These 

views will be considered in developing 

the implementation plan, which is 

intended to help accelerate U.S. 

leadership in wireless communications 

and other spectrum-based technologies 

and to unlock innovations that benefit 

the American people. 

America is increasingly dependent on 

secure and reliable access to radio 

frequency spectrum. Sufficient access to 

spectrum is vital to national security, 

critical infrastructure, transportation, 

emergency response, public safety, 

scientific discovery, economic growth, 

competitive next-generation 

communications, and diversity, equity, 

and inclusion. Increased spectrum 

access will also advance U.S. 

innovation, connectivity, and 

competition, create high-paying and 

highly skilled jobs, and produce 

improvements to the overall quality of 

life. Access to more spectrum, in short, 

will help the United States continue to 

lead the world in advanced technology 

and enhance our national and economic 

security. 

Spectrum access, however, must be 

managed responsibly and efficiently. 

NTIA jointly manages the nation’s 

spectrum resources with the Federal 

Communications Commission. NTIA is 

welcoming public input from interested 

stakeholders to help inform the 

development of an implementation plan 

for the Strategy, which is needed for the 

U.S. to bolster investment in spectrumrelated innovative technologies and 

plan effectively for its current and 

future spectrum needs. 

Sean Conway, 

Deputy Chief Counsel, National 

Telecommunications and Information 

Administration. 

[FR Doc. 2023–26810 Filed 12–6–23; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE P 

CONSUMER PRODUCT SAFETY 

COMMISSION 

In re Amazon.Com, Inc. 

AGENCY: Consumer Product Safety 

Commission. 

ACTION: Commission meeting: Oral 

Argument—open to the public; 

remainder of the meeting is closed to 

the public. 

SUMMARY: The Consumer Product Safety 

Commission (‘‘CPSC’’ or ‘‘Commission’’) 

will meet on Thursday, December 14, 

2023, in Hearing Room 420 of the 

Headquarters Building of the CPSC for 

an Oral Argument in In the Matter of 

Amazon.com, Inc., CPSC Docket No. 

21–2. The public is invited to attend 

and observe the open portion of the 

meeting, which is scheduled to begin at 

10 a.m. The remainder of the meeting 

will be closed to the public. 

DATES: Oral argument is scheduled for 

December 14, 2023 at 10 a.m. 

ADDRESSES: Hearing Room 420, 

Bethesda Towers, 4330 East West 

Highway, Bethesda, MD 20814. A live 

webcast of the meeting can be viewed at 

the following link: https://

cpsc.webex.com/weblink/register/ 

rd3a8cbedeac231e01896d8d56252d109. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: 

Alberta Mills, Office of the Secretary, 

U.S. Consumer Product Safety 

Commission, 4330 East West Highway, 

Bethesda, MD 20814, (301) 504–7479. 


ddrumheller on DSK120RN23PROD with NOTICES1